Generation of Primary Cultures of Bovine Brain Endothelial Cells and Setup of Cocultures with Rat Astrocytes

In vitro models of the blood–brain barrier are useful tools to study blood–brain barrier function as well as drug permeation from the systemic circulation to the brain parenchyma. However, a large number of the available in vitro models fail to reflect the tightness of the in vivo blood–brain barrier. The present protocol describes the setup of an in vitro coculture model based on primary cultures of endothelial cells from bovine brain microvessels and primary cultures of rat astrocytes. The model displays a high electrical tightness and expresses blood–brain barrier marker proteins.